Surface finisher



Feb. 24, 1953 E. F. FOLKS 2,629,252

SURFACE FINISHER Filed March 6, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

era flan/Win fills IITTORNEY l2 a suitably rigid frame.

Patented Feb. 24, 1953 SURFACE FINISHER Eugene Franklin Folks, Hot Springs, Va., as-

signor to Look Joint Pipe Company, East Orange, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application March 6, 1948, Serial No. 13,399

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for finishing,

the surface of a plastic body before the surface hardens.

An object of the invention is to provide a device capable of producing a relatively smooth surface upon a formed body of plastic material such as mortar when the device is held in contact with the surface of the body as it is rotated, or by passing the device over the surface.

Another object of the invention is to provide a manipulative frame and carrier for supporting the ends of a flexible web in such a manner as to allow an intermediate portion of the web to bear upon the cylindrical surface of a rotating body and to provide in such a carrier an arrangement which is so constructed as to enable the changing or replacement of the intermediate portion of the web which bears upon the surface to be finished.

Other objects and uses of the invention will appear from a detailed description of the same, which consists in the features of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 shows a side view of the device manner of use; i

Fig. 2 is a general view ofthe device as seen from the right of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 3 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4-4 of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a modification of the device.

In Figs. 1 and 2 there is illustrated a frame I0 having similar side members H and I2, each of which is shaped to provide terminal portions [3 and I l extending away and to one side of an intermediate graspable portion [5. The curvature or arigularity of the side members as viewed from one side, Fig. 1, should be such as to provide for the presentationof a substantial area of a web and a of flexible material I6 against the exterior of a which are conveniently placedto serve the function of providing with the side members H and crossbars may be made of tubing of aluminum alloy or other suitable material.

Adjacent the ends of each of side members H and I2 there are provided bearings 20 and 2| within which are mounted rods 22 and 23, respectively. These rods extend from one side member to the other and serve to support the ends of the The side members and i States Patent No. 2,380,499.

web Hi. The rods 22 and 23 are freely rotatable in their bearings and are axially removable from the frame when not restrained by means of pins 24 and 25 which extend through holes. in the bearings and in the rods 22 and 23, respectively, as clearly illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. Each pin is preferably provided with a finger piece 26 and a winged nut 21 for convenience in handling. For enabling variation in the length of the material l6 extendingbetween rods 22 and 23, at

least one of the rods is provided with additional pairs of holes 28 and 29, Fig. 3. Although not indispensable, the bearings of the other side member l2 may be similarly provided with looking pins 30 and 3|, as shown in Fig. 2.

One of the rods is provided with a crank 32 by which the rod may be rotated to take up the used portion of the flexible web when a change of the used area of the web is desired.

a In the arrangement shown in Figs. 1 and 2, rod 23 is so constructed as to support a supply roll of the flexible Web; Preferably the rod. is provided with a feather or spline 33 to engage a slot in the core 34 of a supply roll 35, or otherwise to create frictional engagement with the interior of the roll to prevent the roll from rotating with respect to the rod. l i H Rod 22 has diametrically placed openings 36 through which an end of. the web I6 may be threaded. for starting a new roll. If desired. spring clamps or other holding means may be employed.

The frame illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 isparticularly suited and manageable for finishing large diameter pipe. If desired, the portions of the side members thereof between bars it and I9 may be replaced by a single member connecting the mid-portions of the bars 18 and IS.

The frame I0 is so proportioned as to best serve the particular kind of work which is to be performed. While surfaces of other bodies may be finished, there is shown in Fig. 1 a portion of a concrete pipe IT. The exterior of the pipe may have been built up or coated with mortar in any well known manner such, for example. in accordance with the method described in the United While the mortar is still moist and displaceable, at least on the surface, the device of the present invention is employed to present the flexible material Hi to its surface. This is accomplished in the manner illustrated in Fig. 1 with the operator exerting only sufficient pressure on the pipe to produce the efifect desired. The surface of the pipe being finished changes as the pipe is rotated and by the movement of the operator lengthwise of the pipe as different circumferential areas are smoothened. Canvas has been found satisfactory for use as the flexible material, but other materials, such as rubber, leather and available commercial composition webbing may be employed.

When the operator decides that a change in the effective area of the web is desirable, he may remove the pins and roll the used portion into a roll 31 and restore the pins whena clean area is provided between the rods 22 and 23. The flexible web lies against the pipe surface over a considerable arc whose lengths is determinable by the'length of free web between bars 22 and 23. This length is adjustable by fractional changes in the locked positions of the bars 22 and 25 as determined by the engagement of the pins 24 and 25 in one or another pair of the holes in the bars.

The amount of drag which the rotating pipe or other body exerts upon the web is proportional to the area of the contacting web and the pressure applied by the operator. The dragging effect can therefore be reduced or increased by shortening or lengthening, the length of the web between rods '22 and 23. Whatever the length may be, the Web is always tangent to a curved surface at the ends of the contacting area and the direction of rotation of the surface being finished is therefore immaterial.

Mortar may be sprayed upon the surface of a rotating body to produce a relatively uniform covering, but when the device of the present invention is employed for finishing the surface, the

surface is given a dull smoothnes which improves its appearance and assures a uni-form' finish throughout the length of the pipe.

Since the pair of pins 24 and 30 lock the rod 22 to the side members and the pair of pins 25 and 3| lock the rod 23 to the same side members, it is apparent that the cross-bars i9 and i9 may be dispensed with to provide a lighter construction and a frame which is capable of disassembly for compact storing.

In Fig. 5, there is shown a modified form of the device. curved side members 40 and 4! and cross-bars 42 and 43 connected to the side members. The side members '49 and 41 have terminal portions extending inwardly from intermediate portions thereof to provide the extremities of a chord or are for each of the side members. The cross-bars 42 and 43, in this instance, determine the extremities of the chord of the frame.

The supply roll 44 is mounted upon a rod 45 which can be rotated in bearings 46 and 4.1 when the rod is temporarily displaced axially from the position shown in Fig. 5. The supply roll 44 is fastened to the rod 45 in any desired manner, and the rod and the supply roll arenormally prevented from rotating by the engagement ofa projection 48 with one of the side member 4|.

The Web from the supply roll passes over the cross-bars 42 and 43 and extends to a rod 49 to which it is fastened. This rod is mounted for This includes a frame consisting *of' of holes 54, 55, etc., in bracket 5|. The length of the free surface of the web 56 between crossbars 42 and 43 may be established by positioning 7 pin 53 in the desired one of the series of holes 54, 55, etc. The manner of using this device is similar to that described hereinabove with reference to the device illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

The invention is susceptible to various changes and modifications in construction, form, andrelative arrangement of parts, which will now appear to those skilled in the art, and reference may be had to the appended claims for determining the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A device for finishing a curvilinear surface, comprising an open frame having side members spaced apart and providing graspable portions whereby the frame may be grasped by two hands, and terminal portions extending away from said graspable portions and terminating in a plane laterally displaced from said graspable portions, a pair of cross-members carried by the two of said terminal portions adjacent one end of said frame, a second pair of cross-members carried by the two of said terminal portions adjacent the other end of said frame, one of each of said pairs of cross-members being rigidly connected to said side members and spacing said side members apart from each other, bearings on said side members for rotatably supporting the other crossmember of each of said pairs of cross-members, a Web extending between said rotatably supported cross-members and having end portions thereof Wrapped around and supported thereby, said tween the two rotatable cross-members may be determined in accordance with the particular hole which is engaged bysaid pin.

EUGENE FRANKLIN FOLKS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number. Name Date 752,475 Smith Feb. '16,, 1904 935,785 Grimson June 20, 1911 1,067,301 Bricker July 15, 1913 1,127,131 Watkins Feb. 2., 1915 1,156,435 Rosen Oct. '12, 1915 1,234,984 Walker July 31., 1917 1,365,583; Brown Jan. 11, 1921 1,847,046 Guerra Feb. 23, .1932

7 2,007,004 Roberts July 2 1935 'Rembert June 24, 1941 

